Authorities warn IKEA against violating workers' rights

Rostrud sent a warning to IKEA about the inadmissibility of violations of the labor rights of Russian employees of the company. The service is now solving the issue of conducting an inspection,

The Federal Service for Labor and Employment (Rostrud) sent a warning to IKEA about the inadmissibility of violating the mandatory requirements of labor legislation. This was reported to RBC in the department. At the end of June, Deputy Prime Minister Tatyana Golikova, following a meeting of the Russian tripartite commission for the regulation of social and labor relations, instructed "to propose to Rostrud to conduct an audit on the fact of violation of the labor rights of IKEA workers." RBC has a copy of the minutes from the meeting, the authenticity of the document was confirmed by two sources close to the commission.

The issue of conducting such an inspection is currently being considered, the press service of Rostrud reported, noting that until the end of 2022 there is a moratorium on carrying out control and supervisory activities (including scheduled inspections through the service itself). As follows from the relevant government decree of March 10, unscheduled inspections can only be carried out in exceptional cases. The reason for this may be the order of the President, Prime Minister or his deputies. So far, no direct instructions to conduct an inspection have been received from members of the government. RBC sent a request to Tatyana Golikova's office.

As told in Rostrud, the issue of ensuring the labor rights of workers employed at IKEA is under the control of the department, and a warning has been sent to the company. At the same time, “to date, there have been no mass appeals from IKEA employees to Rostrud,” the federal service said in a response.

“With this in mind, as well as taking into account the legal norms governing verification activities in accordance with Decree of the Government of the Russian Federation No. 336 of March 10, 2022, the issue of conducting an audit is currently being decided,” a Rostrud representative said. On behalf of the Ministry of Labor, employment services and state labor inspectorates have been switched to a proactive mode, he added.

A source close to IKEA said that now the company is “working closely with Rostrud” and is looking for employment options for employees who will be subject to staff optimization. To RBC's request, the IKEA press service only replied that the company "complies with Russian law."

How many employees does IKEA have

About 15 thousand employees work in Russian IKEA. Registered in the Netherlands, Ingka Group owns 17 stores and one distribution center in Russia. In addition, she owns 14 Mega shopping centers. The Russian retail network in the last financial year accounted for 4% of total retail sales, or €1.6 billion.

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Trade Union Appeal

At the end of June, the trade union of trade workers Trade Unity, in a letter to President Vladimir Putin, the government and the State Duma, indicated that IKEA employees were informed about business optimization, but did not name its conditions, Vedomosti wrote. The head of the trade union, Sergei Filin, noted that "there was information about the payment of seven or eight salaries, but oral." Union members also demanded external management for IKEA, which they believe will help keep jobs. In July, IKEA employees organized a flash mob against the actions of the employer. Photos of workers with posters with the inscription "We stay!", which they post on social networks, appeared in the media and Telegram channels on July 10.

On May 24, the State Duma adopted in the first reading a bill on the introduction of external management for foreign companies that announced their withdrawal from the Russian market.

According to the Center for Strategic Research (CSR), in total, up to 8 million people are employed in foreign business or related areas in Russia. 350 thousand Russians work in companies that have suspended their activities or completely left Russia.

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According to the Minister of Labor and Social Protection Anton Kotyakov, by mid-July, the number of citizens working part-time or working week amounted to 134.4 thousand people, and the number of idle workers was 127.1 thousand. For comparison: as of March 1 39 thousand people were idle.

In June, the largest number of idle employees was recorded in Moscow, Nizhny Novgorod, Samara regions, St. Petersburg , Leningrad and Kaluga regions, Tatarstan (there are many foreign enterprises in them. -), follows from the materials to the commission on regulation of labor relations.